Watching elearning videos can be a passive experience. This is the reason why videos should be created in such a way that will make it engaging. You want to make sure they will not drift off or be too engrossed with the entertaining elements of the video. It is important to provide videos with the right qualities that will not only make it engaging but will highlight the lesson within so students will find it easier to process information. You do not want them to be distracted by the supporting details in the video so much so that they forget the core lesson.
To help the students maximize the learning potential from elearning videos, you may want to incorporate the following tools that will allow them to process the right information.
Provide instructions.
A video has a lot of elements to it. You use images, narration, music, and other effects to make it as engaging and entertaining as possible. All of this creates the video but it could distract the student from what they should be focusing on. For instance, if your video tells the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, your students could focus on various elements. One can focus on the plight of Goldilocks. The other could zone in on the bears. They could miss the main message because of their specific choices in the video. To ensure that they will get the message of the video, give them instructions. For instance, you can tell them to notice the relationship between Goldilocks and the 3 bears. That way, they will observe the interaction between the characters instead of just focusing only on one part of the story.
Give students control.
An interactive elearning video is not that easy to do but it can be quite effective in learning. If you can manage to give students the ability to control the movement or what they see in the video, that would be a cool feature that will definitely get their attention. You can increase the learning experience and thus make the retention rate higher. Even a simple ability to review, go back, or move forward to the various sections of the videos will help make it interactive already.
Ask questions.
Asking questions at the right moments in the course will make students think while watching the elearning video. If the format of the video will allow it, discussions can be made right after the question is posed while the video is paused. This can heighten the engagement and interaction within the group of learners. If the same questions are used in future assessments or quizzes, this will help increase the score of the students.
Make it part of an activity.
Finally, you can use the video as a part of an activity, it will be a great way to highlight its importance in the elearning course. This does not only mean you will make them watch a video created by the instructor. Why not make them create a video that will exhibit their understanding of the elearning lessons? By allowing them to implement the lessons through a video, it will increase retention and can even promote teamwork within the group. When students are made to create something out of the lessons, they are forced to understand the concepts and turn them into their own.
All four tips will help utilize videos to allow students to understand and process the information they got from elearning courses. You can choose to use just one or combine them to increase the effectivity.
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